ell. I fear the king has led you to expect
something mysterious. As to the tigers: all I can say is that,
like men, when yielded to they are pleased and when opposed they
are angry. Nothing gives way either to pleasure or to anger
without a cause; and anger, by reaction, will follow pleasure,
and pleasure anger. I do not excite the tigers' joy by giving
them live creatures to kill, or whole carcasses to tear up. I
neither rouse their anger by opposing them, nor humor them to
make them pleased. I time their periods of hunger and anticipate
them. It is my aim to be neither antagonistic nor compliant; so
they look upon me as one of themselves. Hence they walk about
the parks without regretting the tall forests and broad marshes,
and rest in the enclosure without yearning for lonely mountain or
dark vale. It is merely using common sense."

And there Liehtse leaves it in all its simplicity; but I shall
venture to put my spoke in, and add that he has really given you
a perfect philosophy for the conduct of life: for the government
of that other and inner tiger, the lower nature, especially; it
is always that, you will remember, for which the Tiger stands in
Chinese symbology;--and also for education, the government of
nations--everything. Balance,--Middle lines,--Avoidance of
Extremes,--Lines of Least Resistance:--by whom are we hearing
these things inculcated daily? Did they not teach Raja-Yoga in
ancient China? Have not our school and its principles a Chinese
smack about them? Well; it was these principles made China
supremely great; and kept her alive and strong when all her
contemporaries had long passed into death; and, I hope, have
ingrained something into her soul and hidden being, which will
make her rise to wonderful heights again.

You can hear Laotse in them; it is the practical application of
Laotse's doctrine. But can you not equally hear the voice of
Confucius: "too far is not better than not far enough"? Western
ethical teaching has tended towards inculcating imitation of the
soul's action: this Chinese teaching takes the Soul for granted;
says very little about it; but shows you how to provide the soul
with the conditions through and in which it may act. "Love your
enemies;"--yes; that is fine; it is what the Soul, the Divine
Part of us, does;--but we are not in the least likely to do it
while suffering from the reaction from an outburst of emotion;
ethics grow rather meaningless to us